Switching things up, AP World History students got to teach their peers about a certain topic they studied which formed the basis for a writing assignment that followed. 

“The students took notes over the presentations,” teacher John Sommers said. “They were allowed to use their notes on the SAQ immediately after the presentations. All the SAQ questions were about the topics presented.”

Being the ones teaching the class forced students to know the material thoroughly.

“Our project is over the material in our upcoming SAQ that goes over European Expansion,” sophomore Jimmy Cheung said. “We are learning one part of the lesson and then teaching it to the class. This allows us to further understand the subject because we need to explain it to someone and answer their questions.”

Having to study and teach his topic, the project allowed Cheung to dive deeper into the subject matter.

“My topic was over mercantilism and how it started,” he said. “I learned what a joint stock company which is a group of people sponsoring European expansion. It was risky because some ships never come back with the desired goods.”  

Learning from his peers, sophomore Poojith Nukala was able to get a better understanding.

“It’s easier to connect with people around the same age as you, which is why it made my peers understand the topic better than a regular teacher just reading off the board,” Nukala said.  “As I was part of the audience, it personally helped me learn better when my peers were teaching than my teacher.”